Wheel for toy vehicles.



PATENTED DEC. 12, 1905.

D. P. CLARK. WHEEL FOR TOY VEHICLES.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 3, 1905.

SH'UQHI'YO'JC ,DAVIZI Z? ULARK,

Wane 009 0 UNITED STATES PATENT orrion.

DAVID P. CLARK, OF DAYTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO D. P. CLARK AND COMPANY, OF DAYTON, OHIO.

WHEE-L FOR TOY VEHICLES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented Dec. 12, 1905.

Application filed June 3, 1905- Serial No. 263,533.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, DAVID P. CLARK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Dayton, in the county of Montgomery and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wheels for Toy Vehicles, of

which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to wheels for toy vehicles, and has for its object to provide a construction whereby light and inexpensive wheels stamped from sheet metal may be read ily and firmly secured on their axles, so as to rotate in unison therewith, being so supported thereon at widely-separated points as to firmly maintain their position at right angles to the axis, and the connection being such as to prevent their becoming loose on the axle, the construction being thus particularly adapted for the connection to the axle of drivingwheels, to which the motive power is applied by gearing or.otherwise, as in the class of toys known as. locomotive toys and driven by an inertia-wheel or spring-motor.

To the foregoing ends my present invention consists in certain novel features, which Iwill now proceed to describe and will then particularly point out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation showing an axle and two wheels secured thereon. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the outer face of one of the wheels detached. Fig. 3 is a similar View of the inner face of the disk. Fig. 4 is a central transverse sectional view through both wheel and disk, the two being shown slightly separated. Fig. 5 is an enlarged central sectional view through the central portion of the wheel and disk, showing the same secured to the axle.

Fig. 6 is a front elevation, and Fig. 7 is an end view, of one end of the axle detached.

In the said drawings, 1 indicates the body of the wheel, which is stamped from sheet metal, so that it may be quickly and cheaply made, while it is at the same time light and strong. The marginal portion of this body is bent to form a flange 2, which constitutes the rim or tread of the wheel, and said body comprises spokes 3 and a center 4, which latter is stamped out into the form of a cup or boss, so that its central portion lies considerably to one side of the central plane of the wheel, being preferably flush with the inner edge of the rim or flange 2. This central portion is provided with an aperture 5, non-circular in form and having, preferably,the shape of a slot or elongated opening with two opposite parallel sides. Around the outer marginal portion of the wheel-center 4, on that side thereof which is directed outward, there is formed an annular seat 6.

7 indicates a cupped disk having a flat annular marginal portion 8, which fits within the seat or recess 6, the body of said disk bulging out similarly to the center 4, but in the opposite direction, and being provided with a central aperture 9, similar to the aperture 5 of the wheel-center.

10 indicates the axle, which is provided near each end with a shoulder 11 and is of noncircular form in cross-section from said shoulders outward to its ends, said cross-sectional form corresponding with that of the apertures 5 and 9. The construction which I prefer is that shown, in which the ends of the axle are cut away or flattened out to form two parallel surfaces 12, on opposite sides thereof, so that the shoulder 11 is interrupted or in two parts.

The parts are assembled by first placing the wheel 1 upon the reduced end of the axle, with its center bearing against the shoulder 11. The disk 7 is then slipped over the end of the axle and brought into position with its marginal portion 8 seated in the recess 6 of the wheel-center. When the parts are in this position, the axle projects sufficiently beyond the outer face of the disk 7 to permit its being swaged or headed down, as indicated at 13, and by this operation the disk is forced firmly against the wheel, while the wheel is forced firmly against the shoulder 11 on the axle, so that the disk, wheel, and axle are firmly clamped together. The disk and wheelcenter engage and bear upon the axle at points which are widely separated compared with the thickness of the sheet metal of which the disk is composed, and said parts are so firmly clamped together as to constitute practically a single piece, although not positively connected with each other, the seating of the edge of the disk in the annular recess of the wheel center preventing any relative movement of these parts with respect to each other in the direction of the plane of the wheel. It follows from this construction that the wheel is firmly supported in a plane at right angles to the axle by reason of the engagement of the wheel and disk and the clamping of said parts between the wheel and head of the axle; but these elements are not solely relied upon to resist the torsional strains developed when the wheel is used as a driving-wheel, since the non-circular form of the end of the axle and the similar form of the apertures 5 and 9 assures the rotating in unison of the axle, wheel, and disk without any material strain upon the parts which clamp the several elements together laterally. This makes the construction particularly adapted for use in connection with locomotive toys as applied to the driving-wheels and axles thereof, where the power to drive the toy is applied either to the axle or to one of the wheels, in which case, with the constructions now in use, the wheels soon become loose upon their axles.

In Fig. 4 I have shown the wheel as a driving-wheel having an internal gear 14 therein, formed of an annulus of sheet metal bent to angular form in cross-section, the member 15 fitting within the rim 2 with a driving fit or being otherwise secured therein, while the member 16 is provided with gear-teeth cut in its edge.

The cup-like form of the wheel-center and disk gives to these parts a'certain amount of resilience which renders the lateral clamping together of the several elements much more effective than would be the case where said parts are rigid or non-yielding, since in this latter case the parts lose their holding contact with each other entirely as soon as the distance between the axle-shoulder and its headed end becomes increased from wear or any other cause, while in my construction the resilience above referred to maintains the parts in effective holding contact through a considerable range of lateral displacement. Although I have shown both wheel-center and disk as thus formed, it is not essential that the wheel-center should have this cup-like form, since the resilience of the disk alone is sufficient for the purpose, although I prefer to construct the wheel center in the manner shown, for the reason that it increases the distance between the contact-points of the wheelhub on the axle and gives additional resilience.

I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself to the precise details of construction hereinbefore described, and shown in the accompanying drawings, as it is obvious that these details may be varied without departing from the principleof my invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, whatI claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a toy vehicle, the combination,with an axle having a reduced end forming a shoulder, of a sheet-metal wheel having a center apertured to fit the reduced end of the axle,

said center bearing against the shoulder on one side, and a resilient cupped disk centrally apertured to fit the reduced end of the axle and hearing at its marginal portion against the other side of the wheel center, the extremity 0f the axle projecting beyond said disk and being swaged or headed against the outer face of the same so as to force and hold the disk against the wheel-center, and to force and hold the wheel-center against the shoulder of the axle, substantially as described.

2. In a toy vehicle, the combination,with an axle having a straight reduced end forming a shoulder, of a sheet-metal wheel having a center apertured to fit the reduced end of the axle, said center bearing against the shoulder on one side, and a resilient cupped disk centrally apertured to fit the reduced end of the axle and hearing at its marginal portion against the other side of the wheel-center, the extremity of the axle projecting beyond said disk and being swaged or headed against the outer face of the same so as to force and hold the disk against the wheel-center, and to force and hold the wheel-center against the shoulder of the axle, the reduced portion of the axle being non-circular in cross-section and the apertures of the Wheel-center and disk being similar in form, to cause said parts to rotate in unison, substantially as described.

3. In a toy vehicle, the combination,with an axle having a reduced end forming a shoulder, of a sheet-metal wheel having a center apertured to fit the reduced end of the axle, said center bearing against the shoulder on one side and being provided with an annular marginal seat or recess on its other side, and a resilient disk centrally apertured to fit the reduced end of the axle and having its marginal portion seated and fitting in the seat or recess of the wheel-center, the extremity of the axle projecting beyond said disk and being swaged or headed against the-outer face of the same so as to force and hold the disk into its seat in the wheelcenter, and to force and hold the wheel-center against the shoulder of the axle, substantially as described.

4:. In a toy vehicle, the combination,with an axle having a straight reduced end forming a shoulder, of a sheet-metal wheel having a center apertured to fit the reduced end of the axle, said center bearing against the shoulder on one side and being provided with an annular margi nal seat or recess on its other side, and a cupped disk centrally apertured to fit the reduced end of the axle and having its marginal portion seated and fitting in the seat or recess of the wheel-center,-the extremity of the axle projecting beyond said disk and being swaged or headed against the outer face of the same so as to force and hold the disk into its seat in the wheel-center, and to force and hold the Wheel-center against the shoulder of the axle, the reduced portion of the axle being non-circular in cross-section and the apertures of the Wheel-center and disk being similar in form, to cause said parts to rotate in unison, substantially as described.

5. In a toy vehicle, the c0mbination,with an axle having a reduced end forming a shoulder,

of the axle and having its marginal portion,

seated and fitting in the seat or recess of the Wheel-center, the extremity of the axle pro-v jecting beyond said disk and being swaged or headed against the outer face of the same so as to force and hold the disk into its seat in the Wheel-center, and to force and hold the Wheel-center against the shoulder of the axle,

the reduced end of the axle being flattened to form parallel surfaces on two opposite sides, and the apertures of the wheel-center and disk being in the form of slots having two parallel opposite Walls to fit the end of the axle, to cause said parts to rotate in unison, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two Witnesses. DAVID P. CLARK.

Witnesses:

CARL F. SHULER, R. N. BRUMBAUGH. 

